114 Home for Christmas

    


Our Arizona home

     Michelle, Ruthie and I rode to Glendale Arizona and dropped off the camper at what would be our new residence when we returned.  Our Minnesota neighbors Barb and Warren were kind enough to put us up for the evening and drive us to the airport the next day,  They were so kind it is hard for me to mention that Barb washed my new Gold Wing shirt with perhaps some tie died sheets or something she had left over from the "sixty's.".   She left a letter with a. lame apology saying that if the shirt was that important to me it shouldn't

Winter on the Mississippi River by our
home next to the Pioneer Club, Wisconsin on the other side.

have been wrapped up in a sheet.  I will admit that she worked very hard to get the shirt back to an acceptable color.    The flight home was uneventful, we flew Spirit which is a budget no frills airline.  A friendly humorous crew made the flight memorable, during the "what do in the event of a flight emergence" talk they mentioned that the FAA had a new regulation that no passenger was allowed to have more than two ounces of dark chocolate in their possession and they would be passing amongst us to pick up the excess. (I don't think that will go very well) With everything else she has going daughter Katrina made the trip to the twin cited to pick

They seem happy now, try and take their dark
 chocolate and see what happens.

us up at the airport.   Our Christmas celebration was amazing, seeing family and friends however waking up to 23 below was a rude awakening.   We stayed to long in Minnesota this year, it seems after the Christmas holiday people go back to work, the children to school and we stayed close to a heat source and off the roads as much as possible.  And the rest of Minnesota stays behind thermal pane windows to gaze out at the barren cold.  Besides the bitter cold the flu season had hit Minnesota at first there were 19 School closings however by the time we were ready to leave the number of schools affected had jumped to over 200.  With 95 percent of the state expecting 40 degree wind-chill and later blizzard conditions it was time to leave.  One very fortunate event happened for Ruthie while we were home.  Our son-in-law Bill knew that her back problem had worsened during our winter trip and the clinic had been helpless in giving her relief.  He suggested she go to a special chiropractor.  Almost a miracle, after one treatment on a stretching table (if I had known about such a thing I might have reached my height goal) and spinal manipulation she was able to walk with very little pain.  We will have to try and find someone on our trip to help her further.
    January 7th,   Leaving 30 below wind-chill and landing back in Arizona in almost 80 degree weather, yes I'm thinking we will do this again next year.  A little hiccup as we backed the Gold Wing out of Warren and Barbs garage the front tire was all but flat.  We nursed it two miles to a filling station and paid a buck for some free air.  This little flaw would stay with us for awhile checking the tire every trip and refilling it, got to` get this taken care of. 

Jaime and Blackie

     We got settled in the motorhome provided by Jaime and Ted in exchange for our horse training services.  We expected this would be our residence for the rest of the winter. 
     Little was known about the two horses they had acquired, but they were now horse owners and determined to make the best of it.   With the promise of horse and owner training they had purchased the horses.  However has it sometimes happens the horses were all they got for the bargain. The four of us made a trip to the tack shop to purchase everything they needed to ride, groom and maintain their new steeds.   It was fun going up and down the aisle putting things in the cart knowing I wouldn't be paying for anything.  I think I heard the owner of the store make a call telling his wife that they could afford that new boat now. (just teasing)   
     Our first session went well, since Gracie was the most spirited I tried to show Jaime the lesson with her while she tried to mimic my actions with Blackie.   Jaime had already noticed that what she thought were loving gentle horses could turn somewhat aggressive when she carried feed to them.  She said "I carry the feed out and then run away!"  I showed her how to put on a demeanor that would protect her from their bullying and keep her safe.  We did some light exercises, leading and teaching them to lunge left and right.  We groomed and cleaned their feet spending quite a bit of time getting the snarls out of their manes and tails.  Working with horses can be more physically demanding than I was aware of and Jaime let me know when it was time to end the session.   I continued to work with Gracie to check on her attitude and trainability.   Both horses seemed to be cooperative and didn't seem to have been mistreated with bad habits.  They shouldn't be a problem.  Jaime informed me that w should take some breaks from the training regiment for her to regain her strength.  I worked some with the two horses on my own however she let me know that I was not to do it without her, a game little lady she wanted to do it herself. 
Jan 10th We read a warning from Mn,  654 crashes 589 before rush hour, white out conditions.  Yup we made the right choice.
     I had heard about the Glendale light show and made some inquiries with our hosts and some of the neighbors.  As so often happens locals had heard but had not found the time to attend.  We let Michelle know about the event and she rode over to spend the evening. 
     Its called the Glendale Glitter and Glow block party and it was awesome!  There were over 23 unique and colorful hot air balloons feathered right on the street.  They say there were over one and a half million Christmas lights, lots of shopping and treats in unique little shops and restaurant's.   We kept making reference to the fact that we were enjoying a outdoor event in January and it wasn't connected with ice fishing or a polar plunge.  When Michelle posted about the event our mutual friend from Minnesota Leslie sarcastically mentioned Fountains frost and freeze event.  Now I know this contradicts my bragging about the food vendors, however we had heard so much about the In and out burgers that we just had to look one up.  It looked like a burger joint from the 50s promoting their everything fresh ( not frozen) offerings.  The three of us were not impressed, maybe we will have to try it again. 
Jan 11th Sunday and Jamie and I worked with the horses.  We said goodbye to Ted as he was traveling to his home country of South Korea for an extended visit.  We had enjoyed several meals with Jamie and Ted and they had made us Korean BBQ bulkogi.  Safe travels Ted!
  We rode the trike toward Cave creek to check out the area.  Just short of our goal a car came up on our side the passenger leaning out and giving us an exuberant thumbs up.  Not usual as the trike gathers a lot of attention even more so when Ruthie is driving.  I thought the vehicle pulled in behind to follow us and just before we made a turn they shouted "Vern". Now this is unusual.  What is it my name on the trike or somewhere, ( Ive done that before somebody calls me by name and I'm amazed then I find out its wrote on my shirt or somewhere, duh)  The I recognized him as he said its Dave from Lakeville  of course we had built a trike for them back in Minnesota.  He and Sandy are avid travelers and RV'ers .  I knew from emails they were heading this way but what are the chances we would drive by their campground just as they exited.  Fun times.     

With all the warnings about high water on the recessed roadways I need to mention the  “Stupid Motorist Law”, which primarily states that any motorist who becomes stranded after driving around barricades to enter a flooded stretch of roadway may be charged for the cost of his/her rescue. Sounds like a good idea to me, I always feel bad when people risk their life to rescue people that shouldn't be there in the first place.